Love is Blind
by Squishybeer
Summary: A man goes on a quest to seek a cure for the blindness of his love. He faces many challenges along the way in order to prove his love.
1. Proposal

A chill ran over William Hill's back. It's just the cold, he told himself as he pulled his jacket closer to him. But he knew it wasn't the cold. He knew that this moment would come some day; he just thought it would be sooner. He was in his 30's but still unmarried. William had spent his life perfecting his skills. He didn't have time for girls. The life of a ferryman wasn't easy. He had spent most of his life taking people across the river Thymes. It was hard work, but an adequate source of money. His dad had always told him that a rich person is a man who has the poor to serve him. That's what William would always be, a poor man serving the rich. William would wake up in the morning, take the rich to their destination across the river, and go to bed again late in the evening. Sometimes when William had received a bit extra from a generous customer, he would head for the pub around the corner and spent his freshly earned money on beer. His life was never interesting. Then Ann came along.

William knocked on the door. The wood of the door felt cold and hard against his fingers. There was a brief moment of silence, which seemed to last forever. William could hear his own breathing quicken as the moments past. Finally he heard a voice on the other end; a low voice with a power in it that made William shudder again.

"Come in," the voice ordered from the other room. William grabbed the door knob and slowly turned it.

"William, it be you. Come in, come in. Why have you given me the pleasure of your visit?" Though the voice was intended to be sweet, William could not help think that there was more to the voice than just kindness. William couldn't resist glancing at the old man. His face was wrinkled by time, so was the rest of his body. Though he couldn't be older than 50, his physical appearance proved otherwise. His eyes though had a surprising blaze in them, an immortal fire.

"What are you here for," the old man asked again. William awoke from his momentary trance and brought his attentions back to the situation.

"I've come to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage," William said. He thought he had sounded assured but not overconfident. He could feel his heart beat quicken again.

The old man looked William in the eyes but turned away. This isn't a good sign, William thought.

"Son, you're a good lad but…" the old man finally said.

"But what?" William demanded almost immediately. Though he wanted to marry Anny above all, he couldn't help fearing Mr. Heathfax's response to the question.

"But you haven't got enough money," Mr. Heathfax finally said.

"Money?"

"I'm an aging man, William. I have had to sell most of my property. I need an assurance of money for my future."

"I have enough money to support Ann, me, and even you."

"But not enough.

"Don't you give a damn about your daughters happiness?" William could feel his voice start to quiver. He hadn't expected this to happen. After all, it wasn't like Ann was of noble birth where marriage was the only thing that counted for a girl. William was astounded by the rudeness of a poor merchant. How dare he demand these things? He was in no position to argue with anyone. Any money he could get should be accepted graciously.

"I know that you love her," Mr. Heathfax continued. "That's not the problem."

"No, the problem is that you are just a wealth thirsty old man." William couldn't contain his anger any longer. The brutality of this man was angering him in a way that he hadn't known before. Normally, he could put up with a whole bunch of things, but Mr. Heathfax had crossed the line.


	2. Setting out

**Chapter 2: Setting out**

William was outraged at this man. How dare he have the nerves to come between him and Ann.

"What's the problem with wanting some money, my boy?" Mr. Heathfax replied. "I need to survive in this world too."

William raised his hand to hit the old man.

"Don't call me your boy!" He lowered his hand in a swift movement aiming at Mr. Heathfax's face. But before the blow could be delivered, the old man grabbed his hand.

"You may not like me, William but you still owe me some respect." Mr. Heathfax was still holding Williams hand and started to tighten his grip. William was putting in all his effort to escape from the closing grip. His hand was starting to hurt. He was surprised at the power the old man still possessed. Finally, after a brief moment of pain, he got his hand free.

"I'm not your boy, Sir," William said in a voice that was quivering in anger.

"That's better," replied Mr. Heathfax. He turned his back on William.

"I will prove you that love is important, not money. I will go to France to obtain the holy water to cure your daughter's blindness. I will show you my devotion to Ann," William finally said with a voice not filled with anger but with determination.

"And then what?" Mr. Heathfax asked. "You still won't be rich, you might be poorer."

"By that time you will have realized the error in your decision, sir," William said. He was beginning to see that still plan might actually work.

Mr. Heathfax turned back towards William. "I will not give you my word you may marry my daughter. I think it will be unlikely, but even if you cure her, she will be married very fast. But not to you."

"That is a chance I am willing to take," William stated and walked out of the room determined to find a cure for Ann.

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Ann Heathfax was the daughter of a merchant. Mr. Heathfax had once been a wealthy man until he had lost most of his money when his ship carrying all his goods sank during a storm. He had tried to gain it back but money lost is hard to obtain back. Though Ann had had to sell most of her lavish dresses, she was still content. Though Ann could sometimes still feel the anger in her father's voice when he spoke to her, she still loved him. Ann was an only child. There had been a problem during her mother's pregnancy with her. She had died while giving birth to Ann. The fact that Ann had been blind didn't help ease her father's content with her. First off, Ann wasn't a boy; though she was pretty, it would be hard finding a suitable husband for her with her blindness; and she had been the cause of her mother's death. Her father had never really forgiven Ann for those faults. But Ann turned out to be a charming young girl. Especially when she met William.

Ann heard the door slam shut. She looked up startled. Her mind had been day dreaming about William It had been more than just a day dream. It was a memory, a pleasant one. William had taken here to a play, Romeo and Juliet. The words had been so vivid. She could picture the scenes in front of her eyes. William had held her hand through the entire play. She could even now still feel the warmth his hand had given her. The sweetness and warmth in his voice had penetrated every part of her body and still lingered. But the sound of the door had broken the dream. Like a knife it had cut through her memory.

A chill ran over her back. Normally she didn't react like this. But something seemed wrong.


	3. Moon and the stars

**Chapter 3: Moon and the Stars**

Ann walked up to Mr. Heathfax.

"Father, who was there to see you?" she asked. She knew the answer to the question but tried to hide her joy. William had come to ask her for her hand in marriage. He had mad hints about it lately but she wasn't sure.

"That was William, dear," he replied.

"Oh, that's great news. What did he ask? Where is he now?"

Her father turned away from her. " I don't know how to say this but…"

Ann backed away from her father. Accidentally she walked into a chair behind her. "Is something wrong?" She had been afraid of this. Though she loved her dad, she couldn't help but think that he might object to her engagement to William. She had tried to convince William that she would be the one to ask her dad, but William was a bit old fashioned and insisted that he was the one to lay out their plans. Her father wasn't replying to her question though. Ann was beginning to panic. Maybe this was more than just an objection. "Dad, where are you? I can't hear you. You're scaring me. What's happened?"

Then she heard the footsteps of her father walking in her direction. She felt him grab her hands and pull them close to him. "He is gone, Ann," he whispered in the softest voice she had ever heard him use.

She pulled herself away from him. "What? No, that's not possible. He said that…"

But before she could finish the sentence, her father interrupted her. "He said that we were to poor a family for him. He's engaged to Lady Genaux.

Ann felt dizzy all of a sudden. This couldn't be happening. Only yesterday William had talked about marriage. Had he just been playing with her? Was this all a joke on her? Maybe he had even been laughing in her face but she couldn't see that. Maybe he had been joking about her blindness and how easy she was to get. But this didn't sound like William at all. Not the sweet and sensitive William she had fallen in love with.

"You must have made an error, papa. He said that he would always love me."

"You know that love isn't everything, Ann"

She turned in the direction of her father's voice. "But he said that it was. He said that love was all you need."

"Ann, I'm surprised at you. I would have thought that of all people, you wouldn't be fooled by love. Not after what happened with Henry. He left you the moment my cargo ship sank and we lost our money. Hadn't he talked about love to you.

"Not like William did. William meant what he said. He promised me the moon and the stars."

"A man can not promise what is not his to give. And besides, maybe you should be happy that you found out now. Imagine if he had promised to marry you or something."

Ann couldn't stop the tears now any more. "He did promise me. We were engaged. He promised. He promised." She let her head fall on her father's shoulders. Her father's arms wrapped around her and felt her like he had always done when she was small.

"Oh my poor child. How you must have suffered."

Ann couldn't take it any more. She lifted her head from her father's shoulder and started to walk away in the direction of the door, feeling her way around her careful not to clash against another piece of furniture.

"I have to go. I need to be alone right now."

"Oh Ann," she could just hear her father utter.

Luckily for her, she did not see the smile of satisfaction that spread across her father's face.


End file.
